


Beautiful nightmare

by fangirl2013



Category: The White Queen (TV)
Genre: Angst, Comfort, F/M, Father-Daughter Relationship, Love, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-06
Updated: 2015-07-06
Packaged: 2018-04-08 00:07:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4283139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl2013/pseuds/fangirl2013
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When things fall apart, you look to those around you. For some people, it's a certain person.  When the person you want is gone, however, then what do you do?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beautiful nightmare

**Author's Note:**

> This will be angsty, I'm sorry. I hope it's not too bad.

Her tears intensified, even as her Father hugged her tightly. Her small face was buried deep in his chest and even as she noticed the familiar scent of his clothes, she couldn't compose herself. The events of nightmare still too vivid in her mind. The concern on her normally stern Father's face should have made her feel guilty but for once, Anne didn't feel any such emotion. All she wanted was comfort. Despite already clinging on to him tightly, like ivy around an oak tree, she moved closer onto his lap. His knees felt uncomfortable and hard underneath her bottom but she didn't mind. Even as she noticed this, her tears still streamed down her pale, tired face.

Every so often, small almost inaudible hiccups burst from her, interrupting her tears. Her Father rubbed her back softly as he heard them and for the next moments, neither spoke. All Richard wanted to do was comfort his small, terrified daughter as well as he could. He should have felt thankful that her tears were silent yet the mere sight them seemed to torture him. After all, it was only natural that he wanted to protect Anne. He didn't want her to be upset. He wanted her to feel like every other five year old. Carefree, happy and completely unaware of the dangers in the world.

"What's wrong, little one? Come on now, you can tell me." He asked her, his voice incredibly coaxing and soft. Softer than it usually was, even with her. He looked at his daughter's tear streaked face and saw the uncertainty flicker over it quickly. 

He tried to give her an encouraging smile but the muscles in his face didn't seem to want to comply. His smile as a result appeared to be more of a grimace. Anne's grip on him tightened momentarily, as if she had noticed just how forced his smile was. Her Father's hair looked dishevelled and messy and even though, she felt upset, she worried about him too. How could she not? Her dream, as awful as it had been, had also seemed realistic. She'd been able to touch the objects around her, smell her Mother's terrible cooking and even hug the very man in front of her. As she once again felt his boney knees under her, as he shifted his position, her young mind thought back to her nightmare.

She could picture all the blood, and all the lifeless bodies surrounding her. Their white, colourless faces almost appearing illuminated in the darkness around her. Anne's eyes had followed each of them, despite being horrified by the sight of them. As much as she'd wanted to run away from them, something had stopped her. As her gaze moved from body to body, she'd felt the bile rising up in her. Spotting the final body, however, she finally fled! The sight of her Father, completely lifeless, was too much for her to bear. 

"I...I had a nightmare." She sobbed to him, finally, her thoughts consumed by her nightmare. She wanted to desperately block them out, to think of something happy and good but every time she closed her eyes, she saw her Father lying on the ground. 

She watched her Father's face, at her words. It crumpled in compassion and within moments, he'd continued wrapping his arms around her. His heart ached at his words. Of course, he knew it was normal for children to have nightmares yet why did his Anne, his little Anne have to be plagued by them so young? Isabel hadn't had them nor had the York boys. He cupped her face gently, as he gazed into her red rimmed eyes. 

"Oh sweetheart. What happened?" Once again, his voice was soft but he soon spotted his daughter react to his words. Her lips trembled violently and within seconds, Anne began to bite down on it. It looked almost painful to him and he fought the desire to scold her for doing so. He didn't want to make her feel any more upset. Instead, he tried to reassure her the best he could.

Anne shook her head, finally and for the first time, he spotted defiance on her face. He'd never before spotted it and he couldn't help but pity that it was under such circumstances. He didn't want her to suffer, after all. She was far too young and innocent!

"You don't have to tell me. Whatever happened won't happen in real life. It was just a dream, that's all." He murmured to her, his face resembling something of a smile. Anne seemed to finally relax, as she listened to his murmured words. Her body slumped against him as she gave in to the tiredness she'd been fighting. Richard watched as she nodded to him, slowly before her eyes started to close. 

He could feel her steady breathing against his neck and before too long, he knew she was fast asleep. Soft mumbles escaped Anne only moments later and it was clear to see she was once again dreaming. Picking Anne up, softly and without much difficulty, Richard began to head for the stairs. His footsteps were deliberately soft and measured in order not to disturb Anne or wake up anyone else in the house. By the time they'd reached the door to Anne's bedroom, she was still very much asleep. 

"...stop that, Mr Fugglesworth. Mummy'll shout." She mumbled, surprising coherently. 

A laugh rose up in Richard as he listened to his daughter. There was a peaceful look on her sleeping face, despite her words. He couldn't help but wonder how Mr Fugglesworth had found its way into her dream. As he opened the door to her room, he spotted Mr Fugglesworth propped up on a pillow in the bed. As soon as he spotted the soft toy, a smirk came to his face. 

Pushing the covers a little awkwardly with one hand, Richard laid his sleeping daughter back on her bed as gently as he could. She shifted slightly once he did but she still seemed to be fast asleep. Pulling her pink duvet around her, he tried to make her as comfortable as he could before he headed for her door. He couldn't go before looking at her one last time. Even though, she looked peaceful, she also looked tiny underneath her duvet as if she would end up disappearing. As irrational as the thought was, he couldn't help but hover around her door. He didn't really want to leave her.

xxx

Her heart pounded rapidly as she woke from her dream. She quickly sat up, looking around herself. For a few terrible moments, she searched for her Father. The barely lit room was so unlike her childhood bedroom and so it was with a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach, Anne realised just where she was. The sound of her husband's soft snores helped to remind her. She gazed at him and she felt the desire to cry. As much as she adored him, and she truly, utterly did, she wished her Father was there. That dream had plagued her throughout her childhood and each time, she'd run her Father crying and deeply unhappy. For as long as it took, he would comfort her and make sure she went to sleep as happy as she could. 

A bittersweet smile came to her face as she remembered the times. At the time, she'd appreciated it but never really thought of it. After all, it was something all Father's did, wasn't it? It was only when he was no longer there had she really seen the value of his actions. 

Tears began to stream down her face before she could stop them. His death, in that moment, felt unbelievably raw. Her heart constricted painfully in her chest as she thought of his absence. Before too long, she was struggling to catch her breath. As arms embraced her, she couldn't help the flicker of hope that appeared within her. She wanted the arms to belong to the man she was missing so badly - her Father. 

"Shhh. It's alright, I promise. Everything will be okay, baby." Her husband's voice was soft and so full of concern that for few moments, her tears intensified. She couldn't stop them. She felt exhausted and emotional and for once, instead of being strong, she finally let her heartache show. It felt almost odd to cry so openly and after so long yet Richard didn't seem to mind.

He listened to her cry, comforting her as well as he could. By the time she'd stopped crying, she fell into an exhausted sleep, his arms still very much wrapped around her.

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment?


End file.
